Harvesting-machine



(No Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

W. E. CRANE.

HARVESTING MACHINE.

' Patnted Jan. l5, 1884.

.. IIMIQII my 25mg l (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. E. CRANE.

` HARVBSTING MACHINE. No. 291,987.

Patented Jan. 151884.

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Unirse Simfree v.ari-wr Fries.

TA LTE ELIPHALET CRANE, F VASECA, MINNESOTA.

HARVESTING-VIACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 291,987, dated January 15, 1884,

Application filed September 2T, 1582. (No model.)

fo @ZZ whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, WALTER E. CRANE, a

' citizen ofthe United States, residing at XVaseca,

in the county of Vaseca and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Harvesting-Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of t-his specication.

Figure 1 is a plan view of the platform of a harvesting-machine; Fig. 2, a sectional elevation on line x x of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is an elevation, partly in section, of the sickle-head yand guide, the pitman and crank-shaft; Fig.

4, a sectional elevation of the carrier-adjuster. Fig. 5 is a detail in section, and shows how the carriers are placed in the platform. Fig.

li is a longitudinal elevation, partly in section, fshowin g the carrier-fingers as in position when in use, Fig. 7, a detail, in plan, of a piece of one carrier showing a finger-supporting casting, Fig. S, a side elevation of one of the fingers; Figs. 9 and 10, respectively, plan and lside views to show the mutual operations of the carrier-bars and sickle-head. Fig. l1 is a front elevation of the frame'near the sicklebar pitman-crank, the front sill being cut away on the under side to give ample space for the crank.' Y

This invention relates to improvenicntsinv the platform, whereby either the heads or butts of the grain may bc moved the faster; and in the general details' of the construction .and

operation of the devices, all as will now be :morerfully set out and explained.

In the: accompanying drawings the frame of the platform A is made of the Jnger-bar a.,

. front sill, a', cross-sill, a2, rear sill, c, dividerboard c4, and cross-supper ts A A, Src. The platbar,are secured the stri ps b b, as shown in Fig.- 9 The spaces b between each pair of these strips are designed for the nger-carrier C G short length toward the grain-wheel end of the platform, and thence, toward the binder or elevator, increase in length, the longest being at that end of the platform. The object of this is to have the teeth short where the grain is thin on the platform, and longer toward the binder or elevator where more grain has accumulated. The fingers are so made that when in position in the platform the front ends or points will project a little above the surface of the platfoin, so as to readily catch the gra-iii when the carriers are worked. This inclination is readily given by properly shaping the lower part, e, of the finger where it rests on the base of casting D, while the upward movement of the finger is limited by the f verse movement fall down and pass under the Y b It will be observed that the ends or points e c of the fingers are so made as not to come above the surface of the platform, and thus in the operation of the carriers all danger of the grain catching under the fingers is obviated. Then the carriers,so supplied with iin gers, are yplaced in spaces b in the platform, the flanges `or strips b2 are secured upon the upper face of strips or pieces b, and serve to guide and prevent the displacement of said carriers. The fingers can be placed any desired distance apart, but it is designed to have those ou carriers C. on a line with eachother, and the same as to the fingers on carriers C. The front or elevator ends of these carriers are jointed, respectively, to bars F F.- These are in turn, respectively, connected with thepitinen f f. rIhese pitmen are attached to and operated IOO by the cranks G, which are driven in anyvjde'- sired way-preferably by a connection with the crank which drives the sickle. The crank:

LJI

shaft is vertical,and therefore takes up much less room,v.ertcally,in its strokethan a horizontal shaft. The carriers, adjusted and operated as above described, will have a reciprocating motion in the platform, the fingers on C, alternating with those on C. The joint of C or C with F or VF being loose, the said bars F or F could sway at random but for the bent braces H H. These braces have rollers h or h in pairs, which straddlc the pivoted guide I. These rollers serve to control the carriers, and whenthe guide is in line with themovement ofthe carriers cause them to move with equal length of stroke at front and rear. By means of the lever i, which extends up and quite near-to the drivers seat, the saidfguidc canlbeheld straight or given any desired inclination.

F arefjcaused to slant onewayat'one'.end of the `stroke and in the opposite Vway `at the other end ofthe stroke, vgiving a longer-stroke totllefront end than to the rear; and 'when theguid'e isswung the otherway a .lon g stroke isfrgiven at' the rear and a short one'at thefront. The object of allthis is to enablethe driver to somana'ge the carriers bymeans of the guide asitohave the butts of the grain carried faster thanathe'heads, or vice versa, and thus insure that Ythe S-grain shall 'reach the elevator or `binder'atright angles with the machine and ithe'band. This is avery desirablefeature in the working of this class of. devices, and is a veryl essential point -for doing good work iny gears? in any 'desired way.

The cranks G, Fi g.'1, which run the carriers, vare designed to be connected by-geari ng'` or otherwise with the crank-shaft which drives they fsickle, in suchia manner that'the carrier-cranks will be fatright `angles witlr therpitman-crank inf regard to their line of center, or the lines 71 a1"rd"8,'l5`igs. 9 and'lO. `They will therefore-be atfnight vangles with eachother, ory alternate, inf/the amount of: power being used. The car-I rier-crank bei-ng: placed` in position, iasfshow'n in Eig.9,and connected by miter-gearingwvith the g pitlnan-crank, -as f represented, when the double 'crank is moved in thefdirectionshown `by-arrow. fro1n9 to 1'0, which is that quarter Aofthe circle in which the crank is most remote from the center line, 7, thea'mount of i motion communicated "to the carriers is represented` bythe i distance between thel linesll land 2; but thishas caused' the pitman-crank= to move in thedirection i-ndicatedffrom 11 to\l2,='being 6. If .these cranks are now moved in the same direction another quarter of a revolution, the inequality of motion transmitted to the carriers and the sickle will be reversed, the amount of motion imparted to the carriers being represented by twice the ydistance between the lines@ and 3, while the-amount of motion imparted to the sickle is represented by the distance between the lines 5 and 4. By this it will be plainly seen that the carrier-cranks are doing their greatest amount of work while thecrank driving the sickle is doing very little work, and vice versa, thus causing a more even use of power, and consequently less liability to clog or stop the harvester.

In Fig. 9 is seen more clearlythan in Fig. l the mode of changing the length of stroke of thc'front andrear carriers. Thisgure represents the short stroke in front and .theilong stroke in the `rear carriers. This is .done by swinging the lguide "l on its central 4z.piv.ot, which, -byimeans of a roller'ior rollersonthe braces connecting with the bars f f', causes thenrto slant, as before stated.

-Imay arrange'the rollers as now shown iin the drawings, or have only three-two .on/.one side and one `on the opposite-and 1in other ways vary the meremanner of applyingthem.

Mortises or recesses may be cut'intheisi'des `of :strips b, as shown in dotted li11es,Fi`g. 5,

andadjacent to the carrier, vto'allowl dirt or loose'fgrain that might accumulate onthe carrier to drop through.

lBythe` construction as above explainedi'the platform canfbe made very much thinnerftha-n in any like devicel know of. lIt needanotyby -the aboveplan, be morethan `two andenequarter inches thick. This .will lallow the machine to cnt verylow and 4pick up :lodged Vgrain with ease. Boththese ends are very desirable points to attain in ldevicesofthis i the barsF F', the bracesH H,chavi-ng: rollers :M1/,f in connection with `a movable controlling- 25. yIn 1a' harvesterfplatform having :setswof iin gers alternately reciprocated,'fas described, and provided with braces H H', having rollers lv h, a pivotedswinging steadying-:guide-I, on which the braces 'H H,= having rollers h- `h, move, substantially yas set forth.

Vf4. i In :a lharvesterfplatform vhav ing `carriers C CQ: provided with castings D, the fingersfE, increasing in lengthaccording to theirfposi- IOO IIO

tion, those at the outer end of the platform their relative length of stroke at front and being shorter and those near the binder or rear ends, substantially as described. 1o elevator being longer than those in the middle In testimony whereof I affix my signature portions7 as and for the purpose set forth. in presence of two witnesses.

5 5. In a harvester, reciprocating or longi- VALTER ELIPHALET CRANE.

tudinally-moving carriers connected to oross- IVitnesses: bars F F, combined with a swinging guide7 G. R. BUCKMAN,

whereby said bars may be caused to change J. C. YOUNG. 

